Time Stands Still
by PitsOfPeaches
Summary: Beca Mitchell wasn't really one for close friends, and she certainly didn't want to go to one of Jesse's stupid "group hangs". Well, this is until she meets Chloe. Bechloe.
1. Chapter 1

I sighed loudly when I heard the familiar chime of my doorbell sound again. Seriously? How many people had my step-mother invited?

This year for Thanksgiving instead of going to my mom's house, my father insisted I met my step-mom's side of the family. They had been married for over 7 years and he reasoned that it was high time I stuck around and actually met my relatives. Apparently that had meant literally the whole entire family and I really wasn't sure how many more people we could cram into our house.

I was, however, sure this day was going to suck.

I was sitting on the edge of our sofa, Jesse, my stepbrother sat next to me and three more relatives I was supposed to know sat to his right. I was pretty sure this was a only three person couch, but whatever.

"Okay guys, this is Warren's daughter, my awesome new sister, Beca." Jesse introduced excitedly. I actually didn't mind Jesse that much. He was kind of funny sometimes and he was also really into music, so we got along just fine. "Beca, this is my- our cousin Benji, he's uncle Rylin's son, and his friend Donald." He gestured to a curly haired boy and then a tan boy with glasses.

"Hey." Benji said awkwardly.

"Sup." Donald grinned and I smiled back a bit tensely. Social interactions were never really my thing.

"Oh and this is Stacie. Aunt Joan's step daughter." Jesse gestured to a busty brunette who took my hand excitedly.

"I totally get how you're feeling. So we're in the same boat, being the 'steps' and all." I nodded hesitantly as she shook my hand excitedly.

They broke into conversation, a lot of inside jokes I didn't get, and I let my eyes wander my house. It almost looked unfamiliar due to all the people in it. My eyes drifted to my beloved armchair I currently wanted to be sitting in instead of jammed into this couch. Apparently someone had the same thought as me because there was a woman sitting in it. A really pretty woman ignoring the commotion around her.

Her bright red hair was down in loose waves, a light blue beanie placed firmly on her head. She wore thick boxed glasses and a pen hung loosely between her lips as her eyes scanned small booklet she had in her hand. She had discarded her brown leather boots and her bright green sock clad feet sat lazily on the coffee table in front of her. Her dark jeans were worn and she wore a loose fit white tee under a long yellow tribal patterned cardigan with blues and whites.

She'd remove the pen from her lips every minute or so to write in the booklet before taking a sip of whatever she was drinking and then place the pen back between her teeth. It was a set pattern that almost had a beat. Remove, write, sip, place, repeat. I hadn't realized I was actually bobbing my head to that beat until Jesse placed a hand on my shoulder.

"That's Chloe." I jumped slightly and turned to him curiously. He nodded towards the woman. "She's my cousin Aubrey's best friend." I tried to remember an Aubrey, but came up blank.

"Why is she all by herself?" I was usually the antisocial one, but I promised my dad I'd give it a try this time.

"Aubrey's probably helping make dinner." He shrugged. "They always say Chloe can't help because she's a guest or whatever. Even though she's been coming to these things since like forever. She's usually more social. She's one of those bubbly kind of people." He explained and I nodded slightly.

"Cool." I said.

"Let's go talk to her." He jumped up, grabbing my arm and dragged me toward the redhead.

"Wait." I said, my eyes widen as we approached the gorgeous girl.

"Chloe!" Jesse grinned and the redhead looked up at the two of us, a smile instantly took up her face.

"Hey, Jess." She removed the pen from her mouth, twirling it in between her fingers. "Who's your friend?"

"This is my step sister Beca Mitchell. Beca, this is Chloe Beale." I waved awkwardly and she actually stood to shake my hand.

"Awesome." She grinned and I smiled back. Up close I could see freckles sprinkled across her cheeks and nose.

"And-"

"Jesse! You're mother is looking for you." Someone yelled and I could see the pout forming on Jesse's face.

"Crap. I'll be right back. You two get to know each other." He waved and quickly departed before I could protest.

I stood there awkwardly as Chloe moved to sit down again, her attention moving to the booklet in her hand once more.

"You can sit." She said, patting the small space next to her. I eyed it nervously.

"It's kind of like a one person seat." I mumbled and she rolled her eyes, placing everything down on the coffee table. She reached up and grasped my wrists, pulling me forward so I landed right in her lap. I felt my face heat up and I shifted slightly so I wasn't on top of her. Luckily the armchair was large enough for me to sit beside her. Really, really close, but at least not on top of each other.

"Rules are meant to be broken." She grinned and I let out a small chuckle despite my discomfort.

"So," I cleared my throat, shifting to get a better look at her. "Why are you not , like, socializing or whatever?" She had picked up her booklet again and I peered curiously at it. It was covered by a brown book cover.

"Because I'm doing Sudoku." She waved the booklet and my mouth dropped open, causing her to laugh. "Joking, I'm not that lame. It's a crossword. " She opened the book to reveal a half finished crossword and I actually laughed out loud.

"Seriously? Because a crossword is way cooler than Sudoku." I joked and I hoped I hadn't offended her. A smile just made it's way to her face and I internally sighed in relief.

"Numbers aren't my thing. Bree and her mom kicked me out of the kitchen. They said guests can't help cook the food even though I've been coming to family Thanksgiving since like forever." She rolled her eyes, and it was actually really adorable.

"That's what Jesse said."

"What, you guys were talking about me?" She questioned, and I blushed lightly.

"I was just wondering why you were by yourself."

"You could've asked me."

"I did." I shot back and she just shook her head.

"After being practically dragged over here. Don't think I missed that." I felt my cheeks heating up again and she glanced down at her crossword again.

"Well you could still socialize." I pointed out and she shrugged noncommittally.

"This is the part of the night where everyone meets all the new people or people who haven't been in a while and stuff. I already know everyone here." She sighed and I frowned. "What I don't know is a five letter word for killed."

"You don't know me." I said and she looked up from her crossword again, her eyes ran over me quickly and I shifted slightly.

"Well now I do. I would've before if you'd come to our group hangouts Jesse keeps inviting you to." I scrunch my face up at that.

"Well I didn't know you were even part of those group hangouts. Besides they sounded lame."

"They totally aren't. I mean, I'm there so." She shrugged, before grinning widely. Her eyes met mine and it was then that I noticed how blue they were. They were almost the same shade as her hat. I cleared my throat awkwardly.

"It's slain." Her face scrunched up in confusion and I pointed down at the crossword. "Five letter word for killed that has an 'a' in it. It's slain." I said again and she looked down at the puzzle.

"Of course." She mumbled, filling in the word and then filling in another right after it. "That means this has to be.."

"So is your family here?" Normally I wouldn't ask so many questions, but she was kind of interesting.

"My brothers are outside tossing a football with a few of your cousins and stuff." She answered, filling in another word.

"Brothers?" I prodded. Hopefully I wasn't being too nosey.

"Yeah I've got five." She said and my eyes widened.

"Five?!"

"Yep. They're… well life at my house is certainly never boring." She chuckled.

"Do you have any sisters?"

"I have one. She's with my parents." She answered absentmindedly, pointing upward. I followed her gesture and my mouth dropped open.

"Oh. Oh my God, I'm sorry." I frowned and she looked at me in confusion. Her brow furrowed before she realized someone, bursting into laughter, much to my confusion.

"God, no." She laughed, slapping my arm playfully. "They're not dead, you weirdo. They're up north. Not in heaven." She clutched her stomach and I sighed in relief, letting out a small chuckle. She sobered up quickly though. "Yeah, my dad has a client up there he sells to. They invited him for Thanksgiving so he and my mom went up there and took my sister. Me and my brothers don't really like going up North though. It's always fancy dinners and boring conversations." She shrugged. "The people here are like family anyways."

"Family isn't always blood. It's the people in your life who want you in theirs. The ones who accept you for who you are. The ones who would do anything to see you smile, and who love you no matter what." I quoted, somberly and she quirked an eyebrow.

"Wow. That was insightful."

"Thanks. I got it from a Hallmark card." I grinned and she bursted into another fit of giggles.

"I like you." She breathed out once she finished.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I think," She turned to me, suddenly we were a lot closer than I remembered. "I think we're going to be really fast friends." I nodded stupidly and she laughed.

"Dinner time!" A strict looking blonde called from the entry way. "C'mon!"

"Yay!" Chloe actually cheers and I find myself smiling slightly. "Just you wait, Mitchell. The food is amazing, and afterwards, well that's when the real fun begins." She tugged me up and through my own house toward the backyard where they set up all the tables.

"The real fun, huh?" I laughed. She led me to what must be the 'teen' table.

Jesse, Benji, Donald, Stacie and a few others were already seated.

"You'll see." She nodded.

I suddenly found myself a lot more excited than before. Maybe being stuck here for Thanksgiving won't suck so bad afterall.

**A/N: So I know I already have another project up and I was going to do a completely different prompt, but this one flowed so easily for me that I just had to write it. Don't worry, Good Girls will be updated regularly.**

**Hope you guys like it! Let me know what you think?**


	2. Chapter 2

I watched curiously as Jesse excitedly introduced every single person at the table to Beca. The brunette nodded slightly after every introduction, waving awkwardly. Something told me she wasn't going to remember all this information.

I could honestly say that I was surprised by the girl sitting across from me. Jesse had always talked nonstop about her to everyone, and looked like a kicked puppy every time he informed us that his sister had denied another one of his invites to hang out with us. I had always imagined her as an awkward, dorky, antisocial, hermit cooped up in her room all the time, headphones plugged into her ears at all times. Sure, she was a bit awkward, but it was almost charming and added to her personality. She still did have headphones resting around her neck, confirming Jesse's rambles about how much she loved music. She didn't seem like much of a social butterfly, but she wasn't completely socially handicapped. She was actually funny and I was kind of bummed that I hadn't met her earlier. Didn't Jess say she went to our school? Why did I never see her?

"Woo! Jesus Christ, Braxton! You're totally stinkin' up the whole backyard with your suck-ish throwing!"

I shook my head in amusement as my brothers came bounding up to the table, loud and as hyped up as ever.

"Oh, shut it, Kez. It's not my fault Cage is Mr. Butterfingers over here." Braxton defended and plopped down beside me. My other brother's followed quickly, Kevin sitting to my right with Cage and the other three on my left.

I snuck a glance at Beca, checking to see her reaction to my brothers. Her brow was raised and a small smirk played at her lips as she observed the boys.

"Butterfingers? Brax, face it, bro. You just suck." Cage swiped his light brown bangs out of his face, the classic Beale grin adorned his lips.

"True." Alex laughed. "Then again, Finn here isn't much better." He shoved my youngest brother lightly, but the younger boy ignored it. It was Finn's first year at the "teenager table", so it didn't look like anything was going to crush his spirits.

"Yeah, but Finn's thirteen. Braxton's nineteen." Cage pointed out and the boys laughed.

"Hey, Beale's!" Jesse called for their attention and they looked over at the boy. "This is my sister Beca."

The girl instantly gained all of their attention and I rolled my eyes as Jesse puffed out his chest a bit when he noticed.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Kevin, but you can call me Kez." Kevin grinned charmingly and reach across the table to shake her hand. Kevin was my twin and was basically the most popular kid in the eleventh grade. Even though he was extremely cocky, he was still a good kid. That coupled with his blonde hair and chiseled jaw managed to get him countless dates.

"Woah. You're like a blonde, male version of Chloe." Beca said, she glanced between the two of us in slight wonder.

"We're twins." He slung an arm around my playfully and I rolled my eyes, putting on a show.

"Unfortunately." I teased, and he held a hand to his chest in mock hurt. I saw a small smile tug at Beca's lips and I felt a warmth throughout my chest. She was so God damn pretty.

"I'm Cage, the oldest and coolest of this motley crew." He waved to Beca, probably picking up that she didn't like touching people much. He always seemed to pick things like that up easier than the rest of us. He was twenty, the tallest and most muscular. He was a lot less cocky than Kevin and managed to score multiple dates.

"Objection!" Braxton called. He got the red hair like me, short and styled carefully. Even though most of us looked alike, freckles and smiles, he usually stuck out with his much smaller frame. "I'm pretty sure I've got the title of the coolest Beale here. I'm Braxton."

That caused a round of laughter and I patted his shoulder sympathetically.

"I'm Alex, and you are really pretty." Alex grinned goofily, his braces on show and I could see another smirk making it's way onto Beca's lips. The boy was fifteen, short brown hair with blonde frosted tips, and blue eyes like all the Beales. He also loved sports and played on the basketball team. Although he mostly sat on the bench since he was a freshman.

"Thanks. You're..cute." Beca laughed at the last word and Cage playfully ruffled Alex's perfectly combed hair, causing the younger boy to quickly bring his hands up to fix it.

"Maybe I could get your-"

"Cool it tiger. She's got a couple years on you." I laughed and I sent Beca a playful wink. A small blush made it's way to her cheeks and Alex huffed indignantly.

"Only two years." He mumbled.

"I'm Finn!" His voice cracked slightly, causing Kevin to snicker. He wore a Miley Cyrus Bangerz hat over his longish, side swept brown hair and he wore a large grin. I'd always loved Finn so much because of the way he always walked to the beat of his own drum. No matter what anyone would think or say, he'd do what he wanted. He'd listen to Ke$ha and Miley Cyrus if he wanted. He'd join theater, sing and play the piano. And he'd be open about it.

"And this is Chloe!" Finn continued, pointing to me with a grin. "We've got another sister too, but she's with our parents up North." He added.

"Oh yeah?" Beca said and Finn nodded. "I actually already met Chloe inside." I nodded.

"So Beca, do you go to Eastwood ?" Kevin asked. Everyone had started dishing their food and broke into small conversations.

"Mmm." Beca answered and dished herself some mashed potatoes. I reached for the rolls and immediately grabbed two.

"Yeah? I haven't seen you around." Alex frowned and Beca shrugged.

"I don't really do any of the school's activities or anything. I'm more of a blend into the crowd type of girl." I listened carefully. I was basically intrigued with this girl the second Jesse started to drag her over to me.

"What? So no football games?" Braxton questioned. "Eastwood's actually got a good team this year. Unlike my junior and senior year." He frowned bitterly.

"Yeah, not really into..sports."

"What about clubs? The social experience is the only thing that makes high school bearable." Cage reached to dish Finn some green beans, much to the younger boy's chagrin.

"Beca's not really social." Jesse laughed. "She won't even hang out with me." He frowned slightly.

"Hey, loser." Kevin said a little quieter, taking us out of the conversation to tap my glasses playfully.

"What, weirdo?" I used my term of endearment and removed my glasses from my face to put them in their case in my bag.

"So, you know Beca pretty well?" He whispered.

"I wouldn't really say that. I talked to her for, like, ten minutes." I shrugged.

"Well that's ten more than me." He sighed. "You think she's cool?" I nodded and he glanced over at the brunette. She was listening to Finn and Jesse talk avidly about movies, per usual, although she looked like she was amused more by Finn and not the actual subject.

She moved to tuck her hair behind her ear and I noticed the piercings lining her ear. I absent-mindedly touched my own ear. I wonder if I should get another piercing? I had thought about it but my parents-

"I might ask her out." He suddenly whispered and I froze. I turned to him slowly after a second. He bit his lip nervously, but excitement was clear in his bright blue eyes. He raised a brow, silently asking me my opinion. I hesitated and he frowned. "What?"

"I don't know…" I trailed off. I picked at my nails nervously. I moved to grab another roll to buy myself some time to think of an excuse for my brother not to ask out the girl without admitting I actually already kind of liked her. "I mean, you don't even know her."

"But I want to." He insisted and I sighed. "And that never bothered you before when I asked about a girl. She's not weird or anything is she?"

"Hey, come out of twin land, Fred and George." Alex called and I silently thanked him for the distraction. "Nailed it." He whispered to himself, although not very quietly.

"Remember that time Braxton tried sledding down the stairs with your laundry basket?" Cage grinned and Braxton flushed. I smiled at the memory.

"And he only cried for twenty minutes." Kevin teased.

"I did not!" Braxton defended. "What about that time Alex tried to make toast in the microwave and nearly burned down the house?" He quickly diverted the attention from himself, leading all my brothers into a "who did the most embarrassing thing" contest.

I let my eyes wander to Beca again to see her already looking at me. She coughed awkwardly before looking around nervously. I grinned slightly until her eyes met mine again. She tapped the side of her forehead with a raised brow and it took me a moment to realize that she was asking about my glasses. I lifted my purse in show before flinching slightly at the sudden burst of laughter coming from my brothers. She smirked slightly and I placed my hands on either side of my head, widening my eyes comically and nodded toward Kevin in mock exasperation. She shook her head before her eyes wandered to Jesse, probably in thought about her own crazy sibling.

"What about the time Chloe hit the family picture with a golf ball?" My head perked up at my name and I winced slightly at the memory.

"I got grounded for three weeks."

"And refused to play indoor golfing for two years." Braxton laughed.

"The 'rents we so pissed." Alex clutched his stomach in laughter and I joined in on the memories.

The rest of dinner carried on like that, joking and memories. We graciously emerged from our family bubble to joke with the other people around us and even though Beca didn't say much, I found myself grasping on to every word she did speak. Each time she spoke it was like a perfectly timed zinger and a small smirk would tug at her lips. That is, if she wasn't awkwardly fending off one of my brother's trying to hit on her or Aubrey commenting on the amount of piercings she had.

"Doesn't it get uncomfortable? Sheila can't possibly approve. Did your mom let you get it or something?" Aubrey prodded and I could practically see Beca's annoyance wafting off of her. We had long since finished dinner and everyone was picking at the remnants of their dessert and sipping their sodas.

"No, I got used to it. Sheila isn't too fond of it. Yes my mom and my dad let me get them. They weren't excited at first but let me do what I wanted." She answered shortly, rolling her eyes slightly.

"I can't imagine my parents ever letting me do something like that."

"Wait till you see her tattoos." Jesse laughed and Beca smirked slightly when Aubrey's jaw dropped.

"No…" She said.

"What? I wanna see." Finn said excitedly and Beca actually grinned a bit. Not a smirk, a grin. It was kind of amazing.

"I would, kiddo," I was surprised by the amount of affection her voice held. Did I miss the part where they bonded, or? "but it's on my back, here, and I'd have to remove some clothes, and well, that probably wouldn't be too appropriate, now would it? But, there's this one." She tugged up the sleeve of her dark blue leather jacket, revealing a small grasshopper tattoo on the inside of her forearm.

"Woah."

"That's dope." Braxton leaned over to get a better look. "I've thought 'bout getting one right here. I want it to be two knives over this skull." He moved his hand around his deltoid, showing off the area and I scoffed.

"That sounds like the lamest tattoo ever." Stacie chimed in, breaking from her conversation with Donald, Benji and Garrett. I was actually wondering why Garrett was still at the 'teen table' since he was almost thirty.

"Truth. If you get that I'll disown you as my brother." Cage joked and Braxton frowned in defeat. "You want to see a sick tattoo.." He shrugged off his jacket quickly and rolled up his sleeve to reveal his tribal tattoo that goes from half way up his shoulders to a bit past his deltoid. The top part wasn't visible because of his shirt, but I knew it was there since he had shown it off multiple times.

"Woah! Why haven't I seen this yet?" Jesse said in awe.

"God, Cage. That thing is huge." Aubrey groaned, even though she'd seen it before.

"That's what she said." Alex giggled to himself, reaching to high-five Braxton when Aubrey huffed.

"Grow up, Beale." Aubrey said before eyeing his tattoo again. "That thing is going to mar your skin forever."

"It's a good thing it looks fucking badass then." Cage grinned.

"Hey!" I slapped his arm, gesturing to Finn.

"Live in the now, Aubrey." Kevin cheered.

"More like live in the streets." She shot back.

"You should get a tat, Posen." Beca grinned and I nearly laughed at the way my best friend's face paled, her mouth dropping open.

"Bree wouldn't get a tattoo for a million dollars." I said and Aubrey nodded furiously.

"I'd get one for two." Braxton said.

"Oh, yeah. Bree with a tat." Kevin laughed. "I'm thinking a tramp stamp." He joked and Aubrey's jaw dropped even more.

"As if." She scoffed. "If, and by if I mean not going to happen, but if I ever had to get a tattoo, I'd get a small one on my foot. With something inspirational. Like free, or something." She added.

"Barf." Braxton laughed.

"Talk about basic white chick." Alex agreed and Aubrey frowned.

"What? Better than knives and a skull!" She defended. "That'd be cute! Right, Chloe?" She turned to me and I shrugged.

"Sorry, Bree. It's a little cheesy." She frowned even more before she huffed out a 'whatever'.

"Aye! Let's play a game of football before it gets too dark outside." Braxton suggested.

"Why, so you can suck it up again?" Kevin teased.

"No, so I can kick your ass!"

"Braxt!" I warned, gesturing to Finn again.

"It'll be fun." Cage agreed. "Just all us teenagers. If I see any of you idiots trying to tackle anyone, I'll personally kick your- butts." He warned to each of my brothers.

"I'm in." Jesse agreed, standing up with the rest of my brothers.

"Girls too." Kevin grabbed my arm to pull me up and I didn't fight it. We always ended up playing a game of football every year.

"C'mon. Before it gets too dark." Finn said, running around to pull Beca up. He was probably the worst of us with the personal boundaries thing. I was happy to see she let him. She didn't seem like the type for personal contact. At least that's what I got from her when I had practically pulled her into my lap. Where, in my humble opinion, she fit perfectly.

"Sounds fun." Stacie said, tugging up Benji and Donald.

A couple more people declined and accepted, and a group of about fifteen of us moved to a clearing in the backyard. I stood next to Beca while Cage and Kevin, self dubbed team captains, flipped a coin to see who got first pick.

"Your brothers are certainly something." Beca whispered to me and I peered down at her. Some how I hadn't noticed how short she was until then. Not that I really towered over her, only by maybe two inches.

"Mmm. Wait till you spend even more time with them." I replied and she raised a brow. "In a couple weeks you'll be swearing like a sailor and challenging everyone to verse you in guitar hero or arm wrestle you."

"Why aren't you like that?"

"Oh I am. You just haven't been around me enough. I like to keep up appearances for family you'll see in time." I nodded and grinned at her slightly when she chuckled.

"So you're assuming I'm going to get to know you all?" She questioned and I paused. Was I being too presumptuous?

"I think you'll stick around." I shrugged. I silently waited for her to reply, but all she did was grin slightly. It was like what she did with Finn. An actual grin and not just a smirk.

I definitely wanted to see more of those.

**A/N:Not too much Bechloe in this one.. but, quick update! Or at least I thought so. I want to crank out as many of these as I can without being too sloppy since my life is about to get crazy! I loved the feedback, and thanks so much for the Favs/Follows. Let me know what you think!**

**I definitely plan on switching point of views each chapter, but if you're really not into that maybe I won't if I get enough guff about it. I also don't really know how long I'm going to make this.**

**And I don't know if everyone else's family is like this, but mine are pretty much the Beale's. Minus the snooty parents. We get into countless shenanigans and sling insults left and right. It's all in good fun :). I even have five brothers, so… haha. Most of this junk though is my actual experiences believe it or not. Probably why I'll be cranking out these chapters.**

**Sorry for the long note. I like to talk :)**

**Thank you to the following for reviewing:**

**Guest- Thank you!**

**Ky- I'm glad!**

**Thalmor- Thanks bunches!**

**kinqslanding- Thanks! I love your stories too. **

**everhtorne- I'm glad you think so. It means a lot.**

**xbechloex- Love the name and your stories. Thanks for dropping a review :)**

**Guest- Glad I you wanted Chloe's POV since that's what I had planned. :)**

**Guest- Glad you thought that was funny!**

**Guest- I'm actually more of a numbers person myself, although I'd imagine Chloe being more into words**

**Hopefully all the guests know who I'm replying too haha.**


	3. Chapter 3

I hummed softly. Titanium had been stuck in my head for weeks. I plucked a few strings on my guitar and sang a couple of lines. I felt myself getting into the song and closed my eyes in serenity.

So, you can imagine my surprise when a flash of red comes bursting into my room singing the McDonald's ad song.

"Bada ba ba baaaa! I'm lovin' it!" I nearly jumped out of my skin when Chloe came and plopped by me happily on my bed. "You play guitar? That's hot." She munched cheekily on a french fry and I stared at her incredulously.

"Dude!" I hadn't seen her since Thanksgiving. Not that I hadn't wanted to. Because trust me, I did. Actually, I guess that was a lie since I had seen her at school once. Her and her twin brother were sitting at what everyone had dubbed the 'jock table' even though I didn't really remember her saying anything about playing sports. Needless to say I didn't approach.

She sat in front of me, completely comfortable as she popped another fry into her mouth. She had forewent the beanie this time, her hair hung in loose waves, framing her face perfectly. She also wasn't wearing her glasses and had on a maroon sweater with a white owl stitched into it. She must've taken off her shoes downstairs and it shouldn't come as a surprise that her feet were covered with brightly colored socks.

"What are you doing here?" I breathed out, clutching my chest as I breathed a bit heavily. She scared the living shit out of me. "Like, in my house?"

"Group hang!" She grinned as if that explained everything. "Jesse wanted to have it at his house today, which is also your house."

"I'm aware." I mumbled and she rolled her eyes.

"Anyways, I figured I'd come and drag you to come meet the posse since we're friends now."

"Right." I breathed. At the dinner it didn't seem like that big of a deal, but now that I knew she's probably one of the most popular people in our school it was kind of a surprise that she actually wanted to be my friend. Or that she was friends with Jesse. I hadn't really realized he was all that popular. He was kind of a weirdo in my opinion.

"I would've done this months ago, but I wasn't sure if you were, like, some psycho or whatever and you'd, like, shank me or something." She chuckled, holding out the bag to me. "But now I know you're not a total weirdo, well mostly." She shrugged and I shook my head in amusement.

"This is Wendy's." I pointed to the bag and her brow furrowed. "You were singing the McDonald's theme song thing."

"Oh. Yeah, well tomato, potato." She shrugged and I chuckled.

"I don't think that's the saying."

"You were singing Titanium, right?" She suddenly said and I nodded hesitantly.

"You know David Guetta?" She nodded enthusiastically.

"Have I been living under a rock? Yeah. That song is my jam." She bobbed her head to an imaginary beat, her eyes shining and I could tell she was probably listening to the song in her head. "My lady jam." She breathed out and I felt my face redden almost instantly.

"Why'd you buy a big bag of fries?" I changed the subject as I peered into the bag curiously.

"Oh! Well we stopped for food and I thought I'd bring you something to eat. Jess said you hated fast food burgers though, so I just got a ton of fries." She pushed the bag forward again and I reached in to grab a fry, grinning slightly.

"Thanks." I said and she smiled back brightly. She settled back against my pillows and I moved to put away my guitar.

"I don't blame you though. McDonalds burgers suck."

"It's Wendy's." I sighed and she shrugged. "If you're supposed to be at a 'group hang', then aren't they going to miss you?" I asked before sitting to face her on the bed.

"Oh yeah. They'll come looking for me any minute now." She said nonchalantly and my brow furrowed.

"So…?"

"So then you'll have no choice but to hang out with us. Our friends are a very convincing group of people. Especially since me, Jesse and Benji have been gushing about you. They've wanted to meet you for a while." She shrugged and my eyes widened.

"Wait, what?"

As if on cue I heard people bounding up the stairs, chattering loudly.

"Hide me!" I panicked and she laughed cheerfully. It was probably one of the most beautiful things I had heard, and I listened to a lot of music. It momentarily distracted me before I moved to slide under the bed.

"Don't worry! My eyes are covered, I'll wait 'til you flat butts get decent." I peered over my bed incredulously as a large blonde girl comes barging in with a strong Australian accent and hands placed firmly over her eyes.

"We're just eating french fries, Amy." Chloe laughed and I quickly ducked under my bed again when I saw Jesse coming in. I needed to start locking my door.

"Is that some lesbian code for french kissing?" She asked.

"Where's Beca?" I heard Jesse say and I frowned.

"She's just hiding under the bed." Chloe replied and I rolled my eyes.

"Come out, Becs. Or I'll sic Amy on you." My eyes widened. Amy was the Australian, right?

"Thanks for the sellout." I muttered to Chloe as I crawled out from under my bed.

"My pleasure." She quipped, still munching on the bag of french fries.

"Oooh. You weren't joking about the fries." Amy said, hopping onto my bed next to Chloe.

"C'mon, Becs. We're going to go watch a movie." Jesse said excitedly.

"You know I hate movies." I frowned.

"It's not like you and the ginger were going to watch it anyways." Amy wiggled her brows suggestively and I balked. Wait, was Chloe into girls?

"Beca and I aren't a thing, Amy. We just met." Chloe said calmly as I internally panicked.

"Sure…" Amy said in an unconvinced tone. "Anyhow, I'm with the hobbit. No movie. We always watch movies when we're at your house."

"Yeah, we should go bowling." I frowned at the random girl who was in my room. Infact, I didn't recognize half of these people.

"Beca, this is Cynthia Rose." Jesse introduced the girl. Her hair was dark with a bright pink streak and cut short. She wore a red plaid shirt and her eyes danced around the room in curiosity. My room was basically just my bed, desk with a laptop, and musical instruments and poster scattered about. And a nice couch in a corner.

"Sup." She waved and I waved back awkwardly.

"And this is Lily." He gesture to a quiet Asian girl who was staring at my lamp intensely. She said something that I couldn't hear, and everyone acted as if that was the usual. "This is Amy, and you already met Stacie, Aubrey, Benji, and Chloe of course." He waved around and I nodded.

"And this is Luke." Chloe pointed to a handsome blonde guy leaning against the door frame.

"Nice to meet you, Becky." His accent was probably British and probably enough to make any girl swoon. Although that fact that I was gay and that he called me 'Becky' was kind of a turn off.

"No bowling." Amy said suddenly. "We went bowling last week." She munched on some more fries and I moved hesitantly to snag a few more for myself.

"Let's let Beca pick since it's her first time hanging out with us." Chloe suggested and everyone nodded.

"Pick somethin' exciting, midget." Amy nodded.

"I'm not that short." I mumbled and Chloe laughed melodiously.

"You totally are." She laughed.

"Sorry, Becs." Jesse agreed and I rolled my eyes.

"You guys can go watch a movie or something. I'll just chill in here and-"

"Oh no, no, no." Chloe grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the door.

"Careful! I tried that once and she managed to hit me in the head with a shoe." Jesse warned and I rolled my eyes.

"I remember that! You kept whining about a bump on your head." Benji laughed.

"It wasn't even that hard, either." I teased and I let Chloe tug me out the door. Maybe it was because the idea of hurting her made me want to vomit, or maybe it was that I really liked the feeling of her hand in mine. Either way it was kind of alarming.

"What do you like to do?" Chloe asked as the whole group came down the stairs and entered the living room.

"I like to sit in my room and not be-"

"What about a board game?" Benji said excitedly.

"A board game?" I frowned. and Chloe lit up.

"Ooooh! Yes! I love board games." She cheered and turned to me excitedly. "Do you want to play?" She asked and I hesitated.

"Sure."

In my defence, who could honestly say no to those bright blue eyes? Besides, the way her eyes lit up and the smile that stretched across her face when I agreed was worth the next couple of hours I was sure were going to suck.

The doorbell ringed when Jesse and Benji went to go retrieve a few selections of games. I moved to go answer the door and I noticed Chloe's hand still placed firmly in mine. She quickly released my hand and I tried to ignore the suddenly cool that hit my hand.

"Hey!" I flinched slightly at the cheery greeting I received when I pulled the door open. Kevin Beale stood confidently on the porch, grinning widely. "Beca! I heard everyone was hanging out and thought I'd come by." He said and I nodded slightly.

"Oh. Cool." I said and Chloe appeared behind me.

"What are you doing here, Kez?" She said, and she didn't really sound too pleased.

"I came to hangout." He said innocently and I turned to see Chloe frowning.

"You never want to hangout with us." She said and he shrugged.

"Change of heart?" He smiled brightly at me, almost identical to Chloe's before I stepped aside to let him in.

"Seriously?" Chloe said suspiciously. He continued to look at me, charming smile still in place and it was then that I realized why he was actually here.

"I finally found a reason to hangout with you guys is all." He winked at me and I tried not to wince.

Shit.

**A/N: Again, thanks for the favs and follows! And I love the feedback!**

**thanks to the following for the reviews**

**Snowflake14- Thanks! My mom actually lived in Argentina for a couple of years.**

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**MakAttack23**

**Guest- I hope this chapter answered your question. Yes, Beca is gay.**

**RadforR**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: There's going to be a POV change every other chapter, sorry if it bugs! Let me know if I should stop?**

"Maybe if you glare harder he'll just inserate."

I jumped slightly at the sound of Aubrey whispering in my ear.

We were all sitting in a circle, playing Apples to Apples and Kevin had been flirting with Beca shamelessly all game.

"I'm not glaring." I whispered back. I was lying. I was totally glaring and totally annoyed with my brother at that moment, but I didn't need Aubrey teasing me even more about my slight crush on the brunette.

I sighed slightly. Beca was awkwardly shrugging off another one of Kevin's compliments and I was trying to decide if it was because she wasn't interested, or if it was because she was just embarrassed. I couldn't really tell, but I could tell that Kevin was interested. Really interested, and even though it was annoying, I couldn't blame him.

Beca grinned slightly when Jesse picked her card, making her take to lead. She was very hesitant about playing a board game with all of us, but I couldn't help but feel like she was enjoying herself. At least a bit. She had discarded her hoodie to reveal a white band shirt and her hair was down. Unlike my own, her hair was in natural waves and she just looked gorgeous. I swear, when I heard her singing earlier I had never been more attracted to anyone in my life. Not to mention she plays the guitar. It was like God decided to make her as attractive as possible and just place her in my life. Whether it was for punishment or a reward, I hadn't decided.

"Chloe!" I jumped slightly and Kevin raised a brow at me. "It's your turn."

"What?" I asked in confusion.

"The Ginger's right. Let's play a new game. This one blows." Amy said .I didn't say that, but I don't bother to correct her.

"You're just mad that you're losing." Jesse laughed and Amy rolled her eyes.

"I could kick your ass any day if I wanted to, Swanson." She replied.

I saw Kevin leaning in to whisper something into Beca's ear and I quickly stood up, causing everyone's eyes to dart towards me.

"I'm going to go get some water." I said, heading toward the kitchen.

It was kind of weird. That I had been going to Beca's house for years and had only recently just met her. I've actually known Jesse longer than she has. Seven years. I'd been missing out on the brunette's company for seven whole years.

"Seriously, Chloe?" Aubrey said, following me into the kitchen.

"What?" I frowned. I pulled a cup out from the cabinet and moved to the sink to fill it with some water.

"Just tell Kevin to back the hell off." She rolled her eyes and I shrugged.

"Yeah, but what if she's actually into him?" I mumbled and looked down at my glass timidly. "I wouldn't want to ruin that for her."

"Oh come one, Chlo! She couldn't be more uncomfortable with his constant flirting."

"Okay, yeah, but maybe that's how she handles all flirting."

"I'm telling you, Chloe. She's not into him." She said confidently and I shook my head.

"She's right, Chloe." Jesse said, entering the kitchen and I internally groaned. "She's not into your brother."

"You told Jesse?" I said.

"No, you're just obvious." He replied easily."Beca's definitely not into Kevin."

"How do you know?"

"She's gay." He shrugged and my mouth dropped open.

"For real?" I said excitedly.

"Really?"

"Mhmm. She's pretty open about it, but she's not really the type to shout it from the rooftops." He nodded.

"Just because she's gay, doesn't mean she's into me."

"She probably is." Aubrey said. "I mean, she's at one of our group hangs. Jesse has been trying to get her to hang out since they were like ten."

"You and Beca can get together, date and then Beca will come to all our group hangs!" He grinned, rubbing his hands together as if scheming already in his head.

"I, uh, I don't know about the dating." I blushed.

"They'll be dating within a month." Aubrey nodded to herself and I slapped her slightly. As awesome as that sounded, I really didn't know.

"Shut up!"

"What are you guys yelling about?" Kevin asked, entering the kitchen with Beca trailing slightly behind him.

"Chloe just challenged me to a game of Guitar Hero." Jesse said quickly and Aubrey nodded along.

"Wait, what?"

"She's going to kick your ass, Swanson." Kevin grinned. "Chloe's the reigning champion. I'm a close second." He slung an arm around my shoulders playfully, and grinned proudly at me.

"I wouldn't say close." I teased and he rolled his eyes.

"You're right. Chloe beats me every time, but you know who she hasn't beaten? Beca. You two should play together." Jesse rambled out and I tried not to roll my eyes at his obviousness.

"Yeah and the rest of us can go get some treats for later tonight and we can watch some movies." Aubrey added.

"Okay." I was surprised to hear Beca agree so easily and I turned to her in question. "You guys are always blabbing on about Guitar Hero. I want to see you in action, Beale." She grinned at me cheekily and I felt my heartbeat speed up.

"Okay." I said a bit nervously before gaining some composure. "Just don't cry when I kick your ass." I teased and she smirked even wider. So fucking hot.

"I wanna stay and see this." Kevin said eagerly, but Aubrey quickly objected.

"You've got to drive, Kev. You've got the biggest car. You took the van, right?" She raised a brow and he frowned.

"I- uh.. yeah I did." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Okay, but I expect a full play by play from you two." I pointed at us before leaning in to hug me.

"See you in a few, sis." He grinned before reaching in to hug Beca. Beale's were huggers. I saw her eyes widen as he pulled her in, and even though I wasn't really happy about him hugging her, her face was hilarious. "You too, Beca."

"Uh, yeah. See you." She said and patted his back awkwardly.

He didn't seem to notice her awkwardness and the three of them left, collecting the others to go retrieve treats. It was obviously a ploy to get me alone with Beca, but neither her or my brother seemed to notice.

"Will Guitar Hero 3 suffice?" She said, already exiting the kitchen to go retrieve the game.

"Totally."

"I don't meant to brag, but I am pretty bad ass at this game." She playfully boasted and I followed her into their living room.

"Oh come one, Mitchell. I have a reputation and everything. Everyone knows I'm amazing at this game." I replied jokingly and I heard her chuckle.

"So everyone says. It'll make it that much more funny when I beat you."

She quickly handed me a guitar and I playfully poked out my tongue at her. She just rolled her eyes before placing a confident smirk on her face. She stood confidently in a wide stance, looking like an actual guitar player about to shred it up on stage. I suddenly felt a little nervous but quickly shook it off.

"You pick the song, Mitchell. I'm pretty much amazing at all of them." I joked and she laughed slightly.

"You're going to regret that decision, Beale." She teased back before selecting a song. We picked our characters and placed both of our difficulty levels on expert, smirking at each other as we did. "Your character is lame." She laughed lightheartedly and I placed a hand to my chest in mock offense.

"Excuse you, but my character is awesome. Judy Nails is cute as hell. Yours is the lame one. Slash needs a haircut." I replied and she laughed even more.

"We're playing Barracuda. Kay?" She asked and I nodded, turning to face the screen in concentration.

"Prepare to get owned." I mumbled, my competitiveness reared it's head as the song started.

We both absentmindedly sung along to the song as we played through the song. We laughed loudly at the other when they missed a note and playfully bumped into each other. The competitiveness was still present, but I found myself more never wanting the song to end, rather than wanting to beat Beca. The song came to a close and I jumped up excitedly when I found that I had won. I fist bumped in excitement.

"Wooo! Yeah! I am the champion!" I jumped on to the couch excitedly, holding my guitar over my head in victory as I laughed. "Yes!" I looked down to see Beca with her eyebrows raised, laughing at me as I started my victory dance.

"Competitive much?" She smirked and I jumped down to face her.

"Suck it, Mitchell." I said a bit breathlessly, standing toe to toe with her. I expected her to back away in discomfort, but instead she stood her ground, her smirk had faded slightly.

"You didn't even win by that much." She said softly and I grinned. Suddenly the high from my win faded and I noticed just how close we had gotten. I could feel her breath on my face when she spoke and I notice just how pretty her eyes were. A dark blueish grey color. They held some playfulness and surprisingly no disappointment at her loss.

"Still a winner." I almost whispered and she grinned her grin. The one she grinned when talking to Finn.

"Still a winner." She whispered back. "I liked your victory dance." She teased before plopping back onto the couch. "I have never seen someone get so..excited over a victory." She laughed and I quickly plopped down beside her.

"I like to relish in my victories. Being a girl with five brothers, I rarely ever really win things." I shrugged.

We sat in comfortable silence for a bit, the victory sign still flashing on the screen in front of us. I could hear Beca quietly humming and it just made everything seem even more peaceful. In that moment it almost felt like just the two of us. It was like time stood still.

It was soon broken by the sound of our friends in the driveway, Amy's loud screeching about some ding-dongs and Jesse belting out some random some. I turned to Beca with a sigh, disappointed by the interruption soon to come. She looked a bit disappointed too before she turned to face me as well.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

I answered quickly. "Of Course."

"I kind of hate movies." She rolled her eyes and I laughed at her.

"What? How can you hate movies?" I asked and she shrugged.

"They're all so predictable." She shook her head as if remembering a particularly predictable movie. "I kinda hate predictable, ya know?" She said to me and I nodded.

"Well as long as I'm in your friend, I promise try to keep life as unpredictable as possible." I held out my pinky to her and she stared at it for a moment. I wondered if I had been too presumptuous again, maybe too forward. But then she reached forward to link her pinky with mine and a smile ghosted her lips.

"Good." She said and I grinned widely at her.

"Awesome."

"It's movie time, bitches!" Amy came bursting through the door and I tried my best not to frown at the interruption.

"Don't worry." I said to Beca when I saw her face fall. "I'll keep you entertained."

She stared at me for a moment before shaking her head when everyone started to sit down. She sat a bit closer to me when Kevin moved to sit on her other side.

"Oh! That was a close game." He pointed to the screen and I nodded.

"Yeah. I was surprised. Chloe.. Chloe's amazing." Beca looked at me when she said it, a smile tugging at her mouth.

For some reason I felt like she wasn't just talking about the game.

**AN: Thanks for the Favs/Follows!**

**Thanks to the following for reviewing:**

**kinqslanding: Don't worry! Kevin will not be too much of an issue. He's a really nice dude!**

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**Guest: I was thinking about a truth or dare, but then again, it's really cliche. Not that I don't love a good truth or dare situation, I just don't know if it's for this story.**

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**Trinide: Yes, I plan to.**

**Thisgurlbechloe: Your comment made my day. Thank you.**


	5. Chapter 5

I was surprised to find that Chloe quickly became a part of my daily life.

I even found myself missing her like crazy when I went to my mother's over winter break. It made me feel desperate and clingy until I received a text two days in from Chloe telling me just how much she missed me too. I recieved random texts all through Christmas break. Silly pictures of her and Finn, random updates on what she was doing and which brother was being a pain at the moment. She even texted about her sister that I had never met. She actually sounded kind of awful, but then again, how could a Beale be awful?

"Beca, it's time."

My head shot up from my laptop and I peered at Chloe in confusion. I had returned to my father's house two days before the break was over and Chloe insisted that we hung out those last two days. She sat across from me on my bed, wearing grey sweats and a thin white sweatshirt and I could see her bright pink sports bra through it. Bright blue fuzzy socks covered her feet and she was wearing her glasses with a crossword in her hands. She was so pretty.

"What?" I replied, shutting the lid of my laptop. I moved to slide my laptop under my bed, ready to listen to whatever she had to say.

"School is starting in two days." She said and I nodded hesitantly, confused as to where our conversation was going.

"And?"

"I think it's time for you to stop avoiding me at school." Chloe said nonchalantly. I balked slightly before clearing my throat awkwardly.

"What? I'm not-" I totally was. Not because I didn't want to see her, but because..well she was Ms. Popular at school and I was a literal nobody. I was pretty sure there were like a solid ten people who actually knew who I was. "I haven't been avoiding you." I lied. She didn't even flinch at my blatant lie and merely just continued.

"You have been, and I don't really know why. I mean, you want to be my friend, right?" She looked hesitant and I felt a little guilty for making her doubt for a second that I didn't want to be her friend. Because I did. Really bad, and maybe even a little more than that. But one thing at a time for now.

"Of course I do!" I replied quickly and she frowned.

"Then why are you avoiding me?"

"I- I just. I mean… You're like really popular at school." I said lamely and she raised a brow. She looked thoughtful for a moment, as if the thought that she was popular had never really crossed her mind.

"I guess… why does that make a difference?" She asked and I shrugged. She scooted closer to me, adjusting her glasses and nodding for me to continue.

"It's just that, you've got all these friends and I'm… well I'm a nobody. I don't really like popular chicks much either." I added and immediately regret it the second hurt flashes across her face. "Except for you! I like you. I like you a lot. You're not like the other chicks. You're so nice and pretty and humble. And you bring good vibes and- yeah." I cut myself off, blushing as Chloe smirked at me slightly.

"So… you think you won't fit in with my other friends at school?" She asked and I nodded after a moment. "Well that's just stupid." She said loudly and I flinched at her volume.

"Excuse me?"

"You're fucking awesome! I mean, shit… you're just.. If you're uncomfortable with like 'mean girls' or whatever, don't be. I don't like to hang out with bitches. Ruins my 'good vibes'." She air quoted 'good vibes' with a hint of teasing in her voice and I rolled my eyes in embarrassment. Did I seriously have to say 'good vibes'? "Anyways, I'm sure you'll fit in fine, and if not, well fuck them. You'll still be my friend and we can hang out together alone and you don't have to hang out with them. Well actually, don't fuck them, because they're my friends. But we still can just hang out by ourselves if you don't like them." She rambled and I laughed.

"I don't think I've heard you swear so much before." I said and she laughed.

"Sorry, I swear when I get passionate about things." She shrugged and I blushed at the fact that she was passionate about anything that had to do with me. "Just don't worry about fitting in with my friends. You'll like them. Except maybe Kevin's friends. We all hang out together and sometimes they're a little cocky, but they're nice enough." She added.

I groaned. Kevin. Aka the boy who couldn't take a damn hint. Not that I didn't like the boy. He was funny and nice, but he had been constantly hitting on me since Thanksgiving and I really didn't know how to tell him to screw off. I tried dropping hints about being gay, but it was like he wouldn't get the message unless I had a flashing neon sign above my head proclaiming my sexuality.

"What?" Chloe asked, hearing my loud groan.

"Oh." I said. It wasn't really an answer, but I didn't know if saying what I thought would offend her. Since they're like twins and shit.

"Oh?" She replied and I shook my head.

"Kevin is just… he's.. he's really persistant." I decided to say and her brow furrowed in confusion.

"Persis- oh! You mean with the whole hitting on you thing?" She asked and I nodded quickly.

"I mean, I've been dropping hints that I'm not interested, but it's like I'd have to hit him with brick that said 'I'm Gay' to get it through his head." I laughed, but then froze. Shit. I was pretty obvious with my sexuality, but maybe Chloe was as dense as her twin? Maybe she didn't notice? I looked at her skeptically and she laughed loudly.

"Kevin's pretty thick in the head." She laughed, not even phased and I sighed in relief.

"Maybe you could pass along the message. You know, that I'm gay." I said and she nodded.

We sat in silence for a moment before she cleared her throat.

"I am too, you know." She said and my brow furrowed.

"What? Thick in the head?" I teased and she rolled her eyes.

"No- well, yes. But I meant about being gay." She answered and I paused. So she is gay. I tried to refrain from jumping up in excitement. Sure, she's gay, but that doesn't automatically mean she's into you. Cool your jets, turbo.

"You're gay?" Duh, Beca. She literally just said that. I shook off my dumb question and continued instead before she could answer. "That's cool." I said and she laughed.

"Yeah. Cool." She chuckled and I grinned. She really was so beautiful.

She tilted her head slightly and I took a moment to really appreciate her beauty. From the most obvious things, like her bright blue eyes, to the more subtle things. Like the small scar on her forehead that she tried to cover with makeup, but I think it adds to her character. Like it makes her seem more real, in turn making her that much more beautiful. I loved her nose and the way she'd scrunch it up when confused or if she thought something was gross or weird.

I had a crush. And it was a bad one.

I looked back up to her eyes to see her staring straight back at me. I tried not to blush and cleared my throat awkwardly.

"WHERE IS LITTLE MITCHELL!"

My eyes widened dramatically at the sound of Amy's voice screaming from downstairs. My mouth dropped open and the urge to run and hide hit like a truck. I looked to Chloe in slight confusion and plenty of panic. She looked just as confused, although a lot less panicked, and shrugged at me.

"I have to hide." I said, moving to dive under my bed.

"Wha- no you don't." Chloe laughed, grabbing onto my wrist. "Amy's not going to hurt you or anything. She's probably just wants you to help her with something or get you to go on one of her crazy adventures she likes to go on.. on second thought, maybe you should hide." She suggested, point toward under the bed.

"IT"S TIME, BITCHES!" I flinched as the door came swinging open and Amy came marching in.

"Too late." Chloe giggled and I glared at her slightly. She just stuck her tongue out at me playfully and I shook my head.

"Amy, can you stop yelling? My mom is going to kill me." Jesse complained, coming in behind Amy. Luckily this time it was only the two of them and not the whole motley crew. Not that I didn't like them, I'd just rather not have them all crowded into my room.

"It's time!" Amy says a bit quieter, but still fucking loud.

"Time for what?" I groaned and Amy grinned widely.

"The annual Barden High Sing Off is in three weeks!" She said in excitement and I groaned loudly.

"I hate that thing!" I said and all three of them gasped.

"What? How can you hate the Sing Off?" Chloe grasps my shoulders and I try not to laugh at the look of disbelief on her face.

"Beca's never actually been to one. She always skips it." Jesse explained and I nodded.

"Hearing a bunch of high school wannabes belting out Katy Perry doesn't sound like a fun time to me. At all." I said and Chloe shakes me shoulders and I laughed.

"I'm on of those 'high school wannabes'!" She pouted and I felt a little bad. "Me, Jess, Amy, Cynthia, Jessica and a few others all do a group number and we kick ass every year." She bragged and I raised a brow, slightly impressed.

"Except the Trebles got some secret weapon this year." Jesse frowned.

"Trebles?"

"Bumper's group." Chloe said and I scrunched up my face.

"Oh God. I hate that kid." He was one of the few popular kids I actually knew, but only because he was the most annoying human being to walk the earth.

"And their weapon isn't much of a secret. They just recruited some foreign kid who's got major pipes. Not to mention all the girl's practically swoon over him, so we're kind of screwed." Chloe explained and I frowned at the look of disappointment.

"Unless, you, Little Mitchell, help us kick ass with your musical expertise." Amy clapped me on the back and I coughed slightly.

"What?" I spluttered. "No way."

"Way. We need you to kick Bumper's ass." Amy whined and I looked to Jesse for back up.

"C'mon, Becaaaaawww. We need you!" He pouted and I ran a hand through my hair.

"I can't do that." I shook my head. No way. I could not go up on stage and perform in front of the whole school. No. No. No-

"You'd give us a major edge. That we really need. It's been our dream to win every single year and kick Bumper's arrogant ass." Chloe pouted and I felt myself wavering with all three of them looking at me like that. "Help us turn our dream into a reality?"

God. It was cheesey, so cheesey. But I just….

"Fine." I relented and Chloe practically pounced on me, engulfing me in a gleeful hug.

My hands instinctively pushed against her stomach, not really used to people hugging me. I nearly died when I felt her toned abs through her thin shirt. Oh God.

Jesse and Amy quickly piled on and I finally wrapped my arms around Chloe and Amy's necks while Jesse gripped onto me midsection.

"Okay, Okay!" I laughed lightly. "Get off before I change my mind." Jesse and Amy let go after a few seconds, but Chloe lingered just a bit longer.

"You're the best, Becs." Chloe grinned brightly. Butterflies danced in my stomach and a small blush spread across my cheeks at the way she was looking at me. Like I made her day.

I hoped to do that more often.

* * *

><p>I listened to Jesse yammer on about how great the competition was going to be while I plucked out a couple of tunes on my guitar, waiting for Chloe to return from the bathroom.<p>

"So when are you and Chloe going to get together?"

I jumped at the sudden change in topic, causing the guitar to produce an ugly chord, ringing through the room.

"What?"

Jesse flinched slightly at the horrible note. " When are you and Chloe going to date. Or are you already?"

"What? No." I said, shaking my head and placing down my guitar. "We're not.. what makes you think I'm gay?." I frowned and he tilted his head.

"Oh c'mon, Beca." He said exasperated. I was kind of surprised by how nonchalant he was.

"You don't care?"

"Of course not, Becs. You're still my sister. Your sexuality doesn't change who you are." He said and I nodded.

"Well.. no. We're not together." I said and he frowned.

"But you want to be?" I paused and he looked expectantly at me.

"I..yeah I guess. I mean.. she's.. I mean look at her. She's just.. amazing. You know?" I gushed and he grinned.

"Then why don't you ask her out?" He prodded and I shook my head.

"She doesn't.. She's way out of my league." I shrugged and he frowned.

"What? Why? Because she's got a few more friends than you?"

"'A few' is an understatement, Jess." I snorted and his frown got deeper.

"Seriously, Beca? You're amazing! You're gorgeous, musically talented, smart and you're nice. Well, nice to her." He teased and I rolled my eyes, blushing lightly at his compliments. "She's totally into you. I can tell. You guys just.. you guys just fit." He shrugged as if just stating a fact and my blush got deeper.

"Thanks, Jess. But I don't think-"

"Don't think. Just follow your heart, Becs." He grinned goofily and I laughed.

"Barf." I teased and he shook his head playfully.

"I'm seriously. Don't overthink this stuff." He said.

"I-"

"_Everybody wants to rule the world!"_ Chloe belted as she skipped into the room. She laughed loudly, Jesse joined in. "Whoo! So what do you two want to do?" She questioned, flopping onto my bed.

"You can pick." I shrugged and she grinned.

"I think we should go play some Guitar Hero." She smirked and I laughed.

"Sure thing. We need a rematch so I can kick your ass." I teased and she just shook her head, grabbing my wrist to tug my out the door.

Jesse stood to follow, whispering softly to me.

"Totally into you."

"Shut up."


	6. Chapter 6

Aubrey and Luke talked quietly with one of my father's work friends. I wished I could act as well as them at my father's lame parties. I kick lightly at the grass, checking to make sure my mother wasn't around to scold me about proper shoe care or something.

"Mom wouldn't be happy, Chloe." I clenched my jaw as my sister walked -more like glided- up to me,almost looking like an angel in her pristine white dress. Her reprimanding look ruined the image. Her own bright blue eyes danced across my body and I knew she was mentally making a list of everything wrong with my appearance.

"Thanks for the heads up, Jenna." I rolled my eyes and moved to sit at one of the round tables set up in the backyard.

"You're supposed to be socializing." She followed me and sat beside me. I tried not to groan.

"I can't socialize with these people." I huffed and she reached over to adjust my necklace resting on my breastbone. "They're all…" I wanted to say 'like you', but I refrained. I really didn't want to start an argument at one of my father's parties. He'd murder me.

"Well learn to. You're probably going to marry one of these guys." Her eyes wander the crowds, as if trying to guess which one she thought I'd marry. I searched her face, she looked a lot older than twenty-two and her freckles were covered by her perfectly done make up. My face scrunched up in displeasure and she instantly reached over to lift my head and smooth out my face. "Fix your posture."

"I'm not marrying one of these...losers." I swatted her hand away and she rolled her eyes. "I'm not into-"

"Don't be an idiot, Chloe." She snapped and I felt my mouth close quickly, staring at my sister in disbelief. I could practically see the steam leaving her ears. "These men are anything but losers, and what you're going through...it's just a phase. You'll see. You'll be happy, truly happy." Her eyes softened and she spoke lightly.

"Jen, I don't love boys." I whispered and her eyes hardened.

"You're being selfish." She whispered back before standing.

Her boyfriend appeared out of nowhere, grasping her elbow tightly. I could see the way she stiffened, but kept her face a mask of pleasure.

"Chloe, it's nice to see you again." He holds out his hand, rough and far too large. I shook it anyways.

"It's nice to see you too, John." My smile felt too forced, but he didn't notice, instead he just tugged my sister away to the refreshments table. It was hard to ignore the way her back straightened so much it looked like it would break.

I kept my tears of frustration at bay. Wouldn't want to be scolded for messed up make-up.

"Are you alright?" I jumped slightly at the hand placed on my elbow. A lot softer than the way John had grabbed my sisters.

"I'm fine, Aubrey. Just Jenna being Jenna." I smiled a bit tensley at Aubrey as she stroked my elbow calmingly.

"I don't like that John guy." Luke commented from beside Aubrey.

"She says she loves him, so.." I sighed.

Is that way true happiness looked like to her.

"Jesse 's here. He brought her." Aubrey informed and I instantly straightened up.

"What? No, no, no. She can't be here." I turned quickly, searching for the duo.

"I thought you'd be happy that Beca came." Luke frowned and I shook my head quickly.

"No. You guys, she can't see me like this. She can't see my brothers like this. She can't meet my sister or my parents. You know them-"

"Chloe. It'll be fine." Luke tried to comfort me, but I shook him off.

Damn it.

"Beca's looking for you." Cage walked up to me, looking entirely too uncomfortable in his tailored suit. His hair neatly combed. I hated it.

"Who invited her?" I immediately questioned.

"Kevin did." Braxton came up beside Cage. "C'mon, don't wanna keep your girlfrie-"

"Shut up, Braxt." Cage shoved him a little too roughly before he looked around quickly. He held his hand out to me and I took it hesitantly. Aubrey and Luke followed while Cage lead me to where Kevin was talking brightly to Jesse and Beca.

I felt my breath hitch at the sight of her. She wore a strapless red dress that reached just above her knees. The dress was simple, yet so beautiful. She wore heels that made her just a bit taller and her makeup lacked its usual heavy eyeliner. Her hair was up in a neat bun and she looked absolutely gorgeous.

"Beca." I breathed out subconsciously and she turned to me quickly.

"Chloe." She grinned brightly at me, taking in my appearance with slightly red cheeks. "You look amazing. She went in for a hug and it took me slightly off guard, but I accepted it eagerly.

"Hey. You.. you look amazing too. Really." I pull back to see her cheeks darken even more. "This is quite a surprise." I said and she laughed.

"Yeah, well Kevin invited me. Said it was a thing that your friends came to all the time." She frowned slightly before covering it up with a grin that didn't quite reach her eyes. "It's hard to say 'no' to a Beale." She shrugged.

"I wouldn't invited you.." I whispered and she raised a brow.

"Yeah?" She prompted and I shook my head quickly.

"You look nice, Jesse." I nodded toward him and he adjusted his tie proudly.

"Thanks, Chlo. You look stunning." He grinned.

"Children." I tensed at the sound of my mother's voice and I knew Beca noticed by the way she placed a hand to my back.

It didn't do much to calm me.

"Hello, Mother." Kevin smiled, walking over to give her a light hug.

I noticed Finn trailing behind her and he quickly moved to stand beside me and Beca.

"It's good to see you again." She nodded toward Jesse, Aubrey and Luke. Although I knew she wasn't really a fan of Jesse. She nodded in approval of his outfit, nonetheless. "And you. I don't believe we've met before." She looked toward Beca and I could practically feel the awkwardness creeping up on Beca.

She hated meeting new people. Especially parents.

"I'm Beca. A friend of your kids." She grinned politely until Finn nudged her slightly to hold out her hand.

"Oh. You're quite beautiful. Are you dating Jesse?" She questioned, taking Beca's hand. Beca quickly shook her head, chuckling slightly.

"No, Ma'am. He's my stepbrother." She replied and I was surprised by how well she was doing.

"Oh.. you're parents split up, hmm?" She questioned and I saw the was Beca tensed even more.

"Yes."

"How come? Money? Adultery? Kids?" She shot off and I gritted my teeth.

Shut up, Mom.

"Uh, I guess they just weren't meant to be." Beca answered and my mother scoffed.

"Right. Well maybe people should start figuring that out before they make commitments, hmm?"

"We're going to go get some refreshments, Mother." I said, tugging on Beca's arm and I ignored my mother's protests.

"Don't be rude!" She said, but I continued to tug Beca away anyways.

"I am so sorry about her. I just- this is why I didn't want to bring you here." I sighed. Beca's face was slightly red and I wasn't sure if it was from embarrassment or anger.

"You're mother is.. bold." She muttered and I let out a breath when I noticed she didn't look too angry.

"She has no filter. I'm so sorry." I apologized again and I watched Beca's eyes dance over the refreshments.

"I met your father already. Scary man." A small grin tugged at her lips as she picked up a glass of champagne.

The only good thing about these parties was that my parents let us drink.

"Oh, wow." I groaned. "He didn't say anything too bad, did he? Then again he probably couldn't say anything worse than my mother."

"Just quizzed me on my parents and our financial situation. I think he thought I was dating Kevin." She chuckled.

"God. They're just.. my parents are whack jobs." I lowered my voice as people passed by us and shook my head. "They got weird standards and my father is just interested in business." I huffed and Beca looked thoughtful.

"Do they know?" She sipped her drink and I looked at her curiously.

"That they're whack jobs?" I joked, but she didn't laugh.

"That you're…" She raised her eyebrows and my mouth dropped open.

"No." I mumbled, looking down at my feet. I felt entirely too embarrassed and I didn't even know why. "My brother's and sister know. Kinda" I tacked on. We didn't speak for a moment and I reached to grab my own glass.

"Is your sister…?" She trailed off.

"Okay with it?" I finished and she nodded. "Not really. She kind of just pretends it's not a thing and tries to set me up with posh business men." She frowned and I sighed.

"You look really, really nice." She suddenly said and I blushed lightly. I thought she might just be trying to change the subject. I was thankful.

"Thank you. I really like your dress." I tugged lightly and the skirt of her dress and she chuckled, a blush spread across her own cheeks. She turned suddenly and I raised an eyebrow.

"Jesse had to pile, like, a whole freaking tube of foundation to cover up my tattoo." She laughed and I squinted slightly. I could see a very faint outline of what looked like vines and flowers. "Same here." She turned to face my again and showed me her forearm that wasn't quite covered up as well, but wouldn't be noticed unless you were looking for it.

"Kevin must've warned you?" I asked and she nodded.

"I mean he said it was a little 'high class', which is why I assumed you didn't want me to come, but I didn't expect it to be this fancy." She gestured around.

"I wanted you to come. I want you to be here." I defended and she raised an eyebrow. "I just didn't want you to meet my family."

"I had already met most of your family."

"You know what I mean." I poked her and she laughed.

"Well I'm not scared off, if that's what you're worried about." She said nonchalantly and I suddenly felt an immense relief of pressure on my chest.

"Yeah? I mean you haven't even met my sister yet." I leaned in to whisper even quieter. "She's quite a trip."

"Trust me, Beale." She whispered back, leaning in even closer. "I'm not going anywhere."

I lent Beca a pair of sweats and t-shirt as we hid in my room after the party. I could hear the cleaners outside, cleaning up the aftermath of the party and my mother's shrill voice directing them to be careful with the platters.

"That.. That was something." Beca laughed, flopping onto my king sized bed. "You're house is also something. Holy fuck, it's huge!" She threw her hands up and I laughed before plopping down beside her.

"Still want to be my friend after all that?" I teased, although a bit of hesitation slipped through.

"Of course. I told you, I'm sticking around." She gave me a pointed look and I giggled.

"Jesse will probably be looking for you soon." I sighed and she shrugged.

"He seemed pretty into that game of Halo." She rolled over onto her back. "And Aubrey is talking to your father about business or something. It figures she'd be able to get along with your parents. No offense." She added at the end, looking to me.

"It's okay. Aubrey.. Bree was just brought up in the same sort of situation. To a different extent, really." I shrugged and Beca stared at me for a second.

"I like you." She mumbled and my eyes widened. "You're like the coolest friend in the world." I tried not to let my disappointment show as her eyes drifted close.

"I like you, too." I replied and a grin stretched across her face.

"Chloe!" I jumped for what felt like that thousandth time that night and glared at Jenna standing in the doorway. "We have a brunch tomorrow. Your friends aren't invited." She sent a look toward Beca who now had one eye open, peeking at my blonde sister.

Her face was washed clean of makeup and she wore a purple matching pair of pants and button up sleep shirt. She actually looked a lot younger. Kind of like the sister who grew up making mud pies with me.

"Brunch. Tomorrow. Family and clients only." The memory was instantly dashed.

"Kay, cool. Heard you the first time." I groaned, shoving my face into my pillow.

"Don't be a brat, Chlo." I ignored her until I heard Beca chuckling. Jenna must have left.

"Don't think I've heard you be so short with someone, Beale." She laughed and I rolled my eyes.

"It's kind of hard with her." I huffed and Beca grinned, brushing a hair out of my face and effectively making my stomach erupt with butterflies.

"I honestly never thought a Beale could be so unpleasant." Beca commented and I laughed.

"Now you've met three."

"Chlo?"

"Hmm?" She stared at me for a second before letting her eyes drift close again, sleepiness taking over.

"I really like you." My heart jumped again. I layed down to face her completely.

"I know." I whispered and she smiled.

"And I'm not going anywhere. Even if you're sister's a little bit of a bitch." She mumbled and I chuckled.

"I'm glad."

**AN: A little bit of insight on Chloe's family. Except for her father, I guess. Time skip. But not by much at all. Like a few days.**

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